State lawmakers need to ban texting behind wheel

By John Ulczycki

Updated 8:32 pm, Friday, March 1, 2013

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State lawmakers need to ban texting behind wheel

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Every day, thousands of Texas motorists use cellphones to read or write text or email messages, surf the Internet, watch videos or use apps. We have all seen them. We can tell by how they drive that they are not focused on driving.

People who text while driving increase their risk of a crash by at least eight times. This is a level of risk comparable to drunken driving. Other phone-related activities could be even higher risk, depending on how long a driver's eyes are off the road, hands are off the wheel and brain is distracted.

All of these activities would be against the law under a proposed Texas law to ban adults from texting while driving.

Teen drivers in Texas are already banned by law from all cellphone use while driving. Now it's time for a texting law to cover adults. While teens have higher crash risk than adults because they are less experienced drivers and may text more, adults are involved in many more texting-related crashes because there are millions more adult drivers, driving more miles than teens.

The Texas Legislature passed a texting bill two years ago. The bill was vetoed by Gov. Rick Perry because, while he understands the risks of texting, he said the law would result in the government micromanaging people's behavior. Expecting personal responsibility is a laudable goal. However, when it comes to protecting ourselves, relying on it is not nearly enough.

Public opinion studies show that nearly all Americans think texting while driving is dangerous. Yet, one in four drivers admits doing it in the past month. Many people who text while driving erroneously believe they can do it safely. If they haven't crashed, they ask, what's the problem?

The problem is they are overconfident about their own driving abilities. They might not think their driving is impaired, but people around them see otherwise. The problem is they are not paying attention to the most important task - driving their vehicle. The problem is they increase the odds that they will miss a stop sign or light, not see a pedestrian or not recognize traffic stopping ahead of them. The problem is their desire to take senseless risks behind the wheel puts everyone around them at a higher risk of a violent death. The problem is thousands of families, including some in Houston, have experienced the tragedy of loved ones dying in crashes involving texting drivers.

Unfortunately, when people are allowed by law to engage in reckless behavior, many will. However, when a law is passed to stop unsafe behavior, many will stop. We saw this happen in Texas in 1985-86.

In 1985, 15 percent of Texans wore seat belts. That year, a primary seat-belt law was passed. One year later, seat-belt use in Texas had risen to nearly 67 percent. The new law led 52 percent of the state's 10.8 million licensed drivers at the time to start wearing seat belts. This is remarkable evidence of a law changing behaviors of millions of law-abiding Texans - a change that education and personal responsibility by themselves did not achieve.

Thousands of lives were saved in Texas because of that law. In addition, hundreds of millions of dollars have not been spent because of the reduction in serious injuries and deaths involving people not wearing seat belts.

The same can happen with texting. A ban on texting while driving will likely lead many of the 15.1 million licensed Texas drivers to stop doing it. If the law is effectively enforced, benefits will be even greater.

The National Safety Council estimates a minimum of 3 percent of all crashes involve texting. The council estimates that 11,400 of the 381,643 crashes in Texas in 2011 involved texting, with nearly 2,600 of these resulting in one or more fatalities.

If just half of Texans complied with a texting law, the council estimates there would be 39 fewer fatal crashes. It estimates the cost of texting-related crashes in Texas in 2011 at $684 million. This includes wage and productivity losses, administrative expenses (mainly insurance claims and premiums), medical expenses and emergency services, vehicle repairs, and uninsured costs.

When law-abiding citizens follow a new texting law, lives will be saved. In addition, millions of dollars will be saved by Texas taxpayers and businesses.

State Rep. Tom Craddick, R-Midland, and state Sen. Judith Zaffirini, D-Laredo, are sponsoring HB 63 and SB 28 to ban texting while driving in Texas. Their legislation deserves your support. Please take a few minutes today to send a note to your state representative and senator expressing your support for this life-saving law at NSC.org/Texas. The life you save might be your own, or that of a family member or a friend.